A Victorian tiled floor looks great but, to keep it intact, it needs lots of care and attention. Most period hallway tiling designs combine plain tiles and encaustic tiles (with different coloured clays inlaid to create a design) which tend to get ingrained with dirt.
Cleaning tips:
The best way to maintain these tiles is to clean them with an alkaline cleaner. Once this is done, re-seal them so that they won't absorb any further spills or dirt. There are a range of products on the market that work particularly well on Victorian tiles: Original Features sells Tile Restorer for cleaning, Golvpolish for sealing, and a mild detergent called Superfloor that can be used to wash the floor on a regular basis. They also sell a Complete Cleaning Pack that is intended for use on geometric tiled floors.
